How to take only what you really need!

Moving is the moment to take a critical look at your belongings and make choices. What deserves a place in your new home, and what can go? The less you have to pack and transport, the easier and more orderly your move will be. These four steps will help you part with what you no longer need with a clear conscience.

How do you start sorting all the things you have collected over the years? Not by randomly putting things in boxes or throwing them away, but by choosing a structured approach that keeps you on top of things. This step-by-step plan will help you.

Step 1: start with something manageable

Pick a small starting point, so that you see results straight away.

• Tackle one junk drawer first. Or begin with one category, such as toys, kitchenware or garden tools.

• Then continue category by category and room by room, such as the attic or storage room.

• Ask yourself simple questions: do I use this? Does it work? Does it make me happy? Will it fit in my new home?

Declutter coach Eefje Sedee: ‘Many people find books especially hard to part with. My advice: keep only your favourite books and the ones you think look nice on your bookshelf, and give the rest away or take them to the second-hand shop.’

Step 2: sort into boxes or use stickers

Divide your belongings into categories, for example:

Take with you
Give away or second-hand shop
Sell
Recycle/dispose of

Put your belongings in a box per category or label them with stickers. That way you can take lots of items to the second-hand shop in one go. Also take photos straight away of the items you want to sell. You could then put them on Marktplaats or Vinted the same day.

Tip: keep old or broken electrical appliances and toys, in other words anything with a plug or that can hold a battery, together in a separate box. This makes it easier to recycle them properly later.

Step 3: recycle items you are getting rid of in the right way

By separating waste properly, materials get a second life and you prevent harmful substances from ending up in the environment. This is where to take your different items:

• Old electrical appliances & lamps
  Hand them in at a Wecycle collection bin near you or take them to the recycling centre. If you buy a new electrical appliance, you can hand in your old (similar) appliance at the shop or give it to the delivery driver.

  Extra tip: erase the data on phones, laptops and tablets before you hand them in.

• Batteries & rechargeable batteries
  You can hand in batteries anywhere you can buy them. Keep empty batteries in a sealed jar or bag and then take them in.

• Clothes and shoes
  Still in good condition? Then sell your worn clothes and shoes, or donate them to a local collection drive. Worn-out and damaged textiles can go to municipal textile bins or the recycling centre. Textiles that are wet or soiled belong in general waste.

• Toys (without electronics), crockery, books, decorations
  Take them to the second-hand shop or pass them on via a giveaway corner or app. Complete sets and clean items have the best chance of a second life.

• Paint, oil, cleaning products and other chemicals
  This is kca (small chemical waste): hand it in at the recycling centre or your municipality’s kca collection point.

• Large items (furniture, mattresses, carpet)
  Check whether your municipality has a bulky waste collection day or drop-off location. Some second-hand shops will collect usable furniture from your home.

Stef Koomen of Stichting Open: ‘No lamp, battery or appliance should end up in household waste. Greeting cards with a tune, shoes with a light and e-cigarettes or vapes are also best handed in at a Wecycle collection point near you. You will find them in supermarkets, DIY stores and the recycling centre.’

Step 4: save items with sentimental value for last

Items with emotional value are the hardest to sort. This is easier once you have already cleared out a lot of other, less meaningful things. Besides, it is often the memory attached to something that matters, and you can sometimes keep that in other ways. A few tips:

• Photos: be critical: duplicates, blurry shots and photos you will probably never look at again can go. Put the photos you do want to keep in a folder or album, or take a photo of them with your phone.

• Gifts and heirlooms: ask yourself whether you really like them enough to keep them, or whether you are only keeping them out of a sense of guilt. Also: do you need this gift or heirloom to keep the memory of something or someone alive? Or can that be done another way, for example with a photo?

• Children’s artwork: put the drawings you want to keep in a folder for later, or digitise them by scanning or photographing them.

Practical tips to make things easier for yourself

Finally, a few extra tips to help you stay organised:

• Start in good time and work step by step. Don’t do everything at once.
• Keep only what you use or what makes you happy.
• Put items you are still unsure about in a separate box and stick a label on it with a date: if you haven’t missed the items before then, they can go.
• Use clear labels or stickers in different colours.
• Schedule drop-off times in your diary (second-hand shop, Wecycle collection point, recycling centre).

Source: Funda